Companies operating data centers within Nepal will now be required to register with the Department of Information Technology. The government issued the Data Center and Cloud Services (Operation and Management) Guidelines to implement this directive.
Currently, several institutions in Nepal, including Ncell, Dish Home, WorldLink, and DataHub, are operating data centers with varying capacities and facilities.
The guidelines state that companies wishing to operate data centers and cloud services must apply to the Department of Information Technology for registration. This is the first time the government has addressed the operation of data and cloud services through such guidelines. Companies wishing to operate will need to provide details such as a certificate of incorporation, the institution's security and privacy policies, and details of their IP addresses.
Existing institutions operating data centers have been given six months to register according to the guidelines. The guidelines have been introduced to encourage the secure and confidential storage of data created by the government, public, and private sectors within the country, using information technology. The guidelines aim to ensure a robust, secure, and effective operation of the information system by registering data centers and cloud service providers.
The guidelines were approved at a ministerial level on January 28 and clearly define cloud services and data centers. Recently, the global market for data centers has been growing, and in Nepal, both government and private sector institutions have been actively setting up and operating data centers. With the increasing use of the latest information technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, and the Internet of Things, the market for data centers is also expanding.
Despite this, there has been no policy framework until now in Nepal regarding the standards and procedures for operating data centers. Now, according to the guidelines, these institutions will need to submit annual updated details to the department.
Sudeep Acharya, the managing director of Dish Media Network, which also operates a data center in Nepal, said he is not pleased with the government's move. He mentioned that instead of promoting business expansion, the government has introduced guidelines that discourage entrepreneurs.
"The business environment is already very weak," he told New Business Age, "The government has focused more on regulation rather than promoting business expansion." According to him, there are currently very few data center and cloud service providers. "These data centers are capable of securely storing customer data and there are no issues with security and privacy."
What is Cloud Service?
Cloud service is defined as the hardware and software infrastructure prepared by data center service providers or other bodies for the operation (hosting) of information systems developed by the government, public, and private sectors.
What is a Data Center?
A data center is defined as a center equipped with the necessary infrastructure for the storage of data and the operation of information systems by the government, public, and private sectors. The guidelines clearly state that no license is required for data centers operating solely for private purposes, whether they provide cloud services or both.
